Health

Impacts of Nutrition in Health

What is nutrition?

Nutrition is the process of providing or obtaining the food necessary for health and growth. Fuel (Food) provides energy to the body for you to carry out your daily task. Nutrition isn’t only about eating healthy it’s about maintaining a healthy eating pattern. Healthy eating offers benefits to your health in the long run, as in, the types of foods we consume today have a lasting effect on our bodies. Many doctors believe that poor nutrition can cause stress, tiredness, frustration, and much much more. Nutrition is often overlooked until it’s too late. It’s not just about how many calories you intake from certain foods. The important thing you have to know about healthy eating is what you are actually eating. The ingredients in foods are important because they play a factor in how your body functions. The foods that we intake can have some good or bad effects in our live. Having good nutrition or eating habits are good for physical and mental health. A study done by the Harvard Health Publications says that foods have the ability to affect your mood. For example, “Bad Sugars” that are in candy, sodas and juice that we often eat and drink affects can affect your glucose level making you a high risk candidate for diabetes or obesity. The physical effects of nutrition is that it “Keeps You Young” this simply means that when your older you’ll be able to do the same things you did when you were younger with ease. You will be able to keep up with your family and have fun without it being a struggle. Weight Management is key because exercising three to four times a week can eliminate unnecessary stress. Keeping your emotions in check can be a major priority of you are an emotional eater. How do you know if you’re an emotional eater?

Dr. Oz has said these are the four questions you asked and answer yourself to know if you are an emotional eater. The first question is how often do I eat an am I actually hungry when I eat? This can be measured by the time since your last meal most people began to get hungry four hours after their last meal. The next question is do I like the foods I’m eating and do they have a positive affect on my body? The final question is what do I do when I’m bored? This is a good question because many people eat when they don’t have anything else to do this leads to overeating. These questions will help you better understand why you may or may not be an emotional eater.

What are the basics of nutrition?

Nutrition is often understood as eating the right foods and exercising, which is true, but there’s more to nutrition than just eating healthy and exercising. We all know that food is a necessity to survive. Nutrition is understanding what foods benefit your body and which foods bring harm to your body. Having good nutrition can benefit you in the long run by providing stamina and energy for everyday life. A good habit reduces the chance of the following illnesses:

Reduces heart diseases (strokes and heart attack) – this is done by understanding the serving size of the foods that your eating and the drinks you drink. Eating fruits and vegetables helps reduce the chances as well. Fresh or frozen fruits and vegetables or canned goods with little to no sodium.

Lowers cholesterol and high blood pressure – Eating foods with high protein can lower you cholesterol. Some foods that you should eat are steak , chicken and and eggs.

Makes your immune system stronger – A strong and healthy immune system protects your body against sickness and disease.

Give you more energy – You will have more stamina and energy to work throughout the day without getting tired so easily.

Effects And Diseases Of Poor Nutrition

Diabetes – a disease that affects your body’s ability to produce or use insulin. Insulin is the hormone that your body using to prevent your sugar levels from getting to high or too low. People diagnosed with diabetes have double the health risk for heart attacks , strokes and kidney problems. All foods can not cause diabetes but overtime some foods do.

Obesity – a condition characterized by the excessive accumulation and storage of fat in the body. Obesity does not happen quickly. It takes time and usually is based on the types of food and the amount of food you’ve been eating. Fatty, fried foods or eating the entire bag is having a negative effect on your body. Remember, if you can’t see your feet, you could be considered obese.

What is poor Nutrition?

Poor Nutrition can be eating too much of the bad foods or not enough of the good foods or eating too many foods that have no nutrition. This is why it’s important to give your body a selection of foods to eat and not consume the same things over and over again. Too much of a good​ thing becomes bad.

Nutrition is not saying that you can’t have cheat days it’s just teaching you how to manage what you eat. Many people eat things so often that they can’t notice the negative effects that it’s having on their bodies. Due to poor nutrition many people have prematurely passed away. A study done in 2012 shows that 599,711 people died due to heart failure. Many people (582,623) have lost their lives to cancer. Around 128,00 people die yearly from strokes and other related illnesses. Some of those death can be prevented by the things that we eat every day. Many people don’t understand the risk of the foods they eat because the impact is often delayed. Nutrition is also poor because overtime food production has changed. In today’s world animal cruelty and genetically modified organisms is a method used to increase the amount of food produced. Considering the health effects of these methods people have a higher chance of becoming ill. Speeding up the production process can take away the nutritional value in foods. When food is handled without proper care many become sick from the things injected into animals. When cooking your food make sure that are clean and following the instructions given to prevent illnesses such as Salmonella.

What are the hardships of maintaining a healthy eating habit?

Eating healthy consistently can be one of the most challenging things to do. Eating healthy is not always convenient, for example… on certain occasions when were tired, let’s face it, it’s easier to go to fast food rather than cook. In today’s world anything is accessible and it’s easy to find yourself eating unhealthy foods. It’s never to late to start eating healthy so start with your next meal and stick to it. The fist step to healthy eating is starting with a plan and executing it.

Food Planning – is essential you have to know what you are going to eat if you’re going to be successful. Planning your meals should be done when you go grocery shopping. Purposely think about your meals and how healthy you will feel. Another option is to consider a meal delivery service

Enjoy What You Eat – eating healthy will not last long if you don’t enjoy the meals that you’re eating you can also come up with your own healthy recipes.

Healthy Food Substitutes

Healthy food substitutes are not to take the place of our favorite food and drinks it’s to help us keep balance. Healthy substitutes need to be practiced all the time so as to lead to health improvements. If you have celiac disease, there is no choice… you MUST practice healthy, gluten-free eating. Those of us with gluten sensitivities also know how healthy foods provide a better feeling of health. Regardless of whether you are gluten sensitive or not, or have any other disease or not, eating healthy foods will provide the good energy your body is missing.

There are plenty of foods that have great health benefits on our bodies.

Yogurt Instead of ice cream

Olive Oil instead of Butter

Almond Milk instead​ of Cow Milk

Tea instead of Soda

Popcorn instead of Chips

The number one thing that everyone should do daily health wise is drink water. Water is the most important thing that you can drink because it gets the toxins out of your body and strengthens your body to fight diseases. Water hydrates your body and gives you the energy you need to perform in every life.

What’s Good? What’s Bad?

Not all foods are bad but it depends on the serving size most often we don’t look at the serving size listed on the label so we began to accumulate unnecessary calories which can lead to weight gain and health issues.

What does a healthy diet consist of? A healthy diet consists of eating a variety of foods that brings different nutritional value with a portion size that matches your needed fuel. The main key to sustaining a healthy diet is by eating fruit and vegetables. Having a balanced diet is important because it gives you the chance to reward yourself for doing well. Nutrition is not to make you stop eating the things you love it’s to help you so one day you won’t have to face certain health issues. Nutrition keeps you strong and healthy to do the things you love!

Understanding the Label… Again

Rеаdіng a Fооd Label for Glutеn Frее Freedom

Obviously, there іѕ mоrе to a fооd lаbеl than аn іngrеdіеntѕ lіѕt. The frоnt оf a lаbеl tеllѕ you nоt only what’s іn the расkаgе but аlѕо еxсіtеѕ the рrоduсt, sometimes in соnfuѕіng ways. Knоwіng hоw to read a fооd label іѕ the kеу tо happily staying gluten free. Here іѕ what уоu nееd to knоw. Fооd labels соmе іn аll ѕhареѕ аnd ѕіzеѕ. Sоmе аrе сrіѕр, easy tо rеаd and provide all the іnfоrmаtіоn уоu need. Others, well not so much, tend to be confusing, аnd lеаvе уоu wіth mоrе questions than they аnѕwеr. These are the ones I put back on the shelf.

Anоthеr wау tо rаіѕе your соnfіdеnсе lеvеl is tо рrоmіѕе yourself that уоu will rеаd the lаbеl every tіmе уоu purchase a product, rеgаrdlеѕѕ of hоw many tіmеѕ you hаvе рrеvіоuѕlу rеаd the same lаbеl аnd found the іtеm safe. Thе dirty secret is that things can change and they dо, оftеn еnоugh tо mаkе this promise іmроrtаnt. It іѕ a bit lіkе buсklіng your ѕеаt belt each time уоu gеt behind the wheel, dеѕріtе never hаvіng needed іt previously. Yоu just never knоw what mіght hарреn.

Hоw To Read Lаbеlѕ Tо Dеtеrmіnе if the Food is Glutеn Free

Mоѕt оf the tіmе уоu can dеtеrmіnе from rеаdіng a food lаbеl іf the food рrоduсt is gluten-free and ѕаfе for you to eat. Here аrе the steps to determine іf the fооd іѕ glutеn frее.

Lооk for a certified glutеn frее ѕуmbоl. I dоn’t mеаn that the package ѕауѕ the fооd is gluten frее, but rаthеr there іѕ a symbol on the расkаgе ѕtаtіng аn outside соmраnу certifies іt. If so, then іt is ѕаfе. If you don’t see a ѕуmbоl, gо tо the next ѕtер.

How To Еаt When Уоu Hаvе Celiac Dіѕеаѕе

I admit… eаtіng a gluten-free dіеt іѕ nоt еаѕу. Well, at least at first it isn’t. Stick with me here and let me reflect on this new “thing” in your life. If you tаkе your time tо rеаd lаbеlѕ аnd аѕk questions, уоu саn ѕtау on a gluten-free еаtіng plan. When you have сеlіас dіѕеаѕе, you can not еаt аnу fооdѕ thаt contain glutеn. This іnсludеs fооdѕ made with wheat, bаrlеу, rуе, оr trіtісаlе (а wheat-rye cross). Cоmmоn foods that соntаіn glutеn include Brеаd, Crасkеrѕ, Pasta, Pizza, аnd breakfast cereals.

Thе National Foundation fоr Celiac Awareness also hаѕ a ѕуmbоl that арреаrѕ on fооdѕ made by соmраnіеѕ that agree tо іnvеѕtіgаtе іngrеdіеntѕ, test рrоduсtѕ tо 20 ppm аnd lаbеl them соrrесtlу. Thе NFCA dоеѕ nоt do the tеѕtіng оr inspect the fасіlіtіеѕ. Thе group is сurrеntlу wоrkіng on a сеrtіfісаtіоn seal ѕіmіlаr tо the оnе uѕеd bу the other two grоuрѕ.

Final Words

Sо hеrе iѕ the moral оf the story… kеер уоur eyes open fоr reoccurring diet fads in the market. Always hаvе your mind open to уоur bеѕt option – a balanced diet with foods in moderation. If уоu suspect уоu аrе gluten sensitive, the firѕt thing уоu ѕhоuld dо iѕ tо contact уоur doctor аnd arrange a test bеfоrе уоu start a self-prescribed diet. Your doctor or nutritionist will then be able to assist you getting started and help you immensely with the adjustment.

Achieve Optimal Health with the Proper Diet

Being healthy seems to be unbelievably complicated; there are ads everywhere and various experts giving different advice. However, achieving optimal health and losing weight faster does not need to be so complicated. People have been much healthier in the past, before all the dieting took hold of our society. The rules used in dieting from the past have not changed and can work for us. To achieve an optimal health and lose weight effectively these, all you need is to practice the following:

Eat real foods

The simplest and the best effective way to achieve optimum health are just to focus on the real foods. What do I mean by real foods? These are the unprocessed foods that nature has made. Eat a combination of plants and animal foods; low carbohydrate vegetables (the ones that grow above ground), free-range meat, fish, fruits, eggs (mainly the whites), seeds, dairy products (limited or none if you have sensitivity), water, nuts, and healthy fats and oils. Stay within your carbohydrate recommended range of 20-50g. If you are healthy, lean, gluten free fit and active, eating unrefined carbs can be okay. This includes legumes, sweet potatoes, potatoes and gluten free grains like brown rice, quinoa and oats. Strict gluten free food is important for people with in celiac disease so cutting out gluten foods means we are likely consuming fewer calories, naturally resulting in weight loss. However, if you are overweight or even obese, cutting out sugars and starches along with the above suggestions can lead to added weight loss.

Lift weights and move around

In order to maintain an ideal health, it is vital to be active and use your muscles. Exercise is essential for your body, heart, brain and hormones to function properly. Lifting weights 3-4 times a week and other activities like jogging, swimming, walking, or bike riding will lower your blood sugar levels, lower your triglycerides (lipids), raise testosterone hormones and improve cholesterol rating. Exercising also helps in burning excess calories, thus losing weight. Remember, calories are fuel so if you burn more fuel than you consume, you will shed excess weight. Exercises are more efficient when combined with a healthy gluten free diet.

When performing exercises, be sure to incorporate all parts of the body. This is not necessary every day but look at your routines throughout the week. When you concentrate on one part of the body for any length of time, you can feel bored or reach a plateau. You can train by listening to music or conversing with your workout partner during your training. You can also exercise by taking the stairs rather than the elevator… it really is simple changes like that that help us. Pick an effective time of the day for your exercise and stick with it. You can do this!

Avoid ingesting toxic substances in your body

There are various things in the environment that are toxic and some of these substances are addictive. Some of these substances include alcohol, cigarettes, and abusive drugs but could also be substances like high-fructose corn syrup. The best solution to this is to practice healthy and mindful dieting, with regular exercises. Start by reducing these substances and work your way to eliminating them all together.

Get adequate sleep

Sleep like a baby. I know, for some this isn’t so simple. Sleep is paramount to optimum health, and studies show that lack of adequate sleep is associated with obesity and heart diseases. It is highly advisable to speak with your physician if you can’t sleep properly. Most common sleep disorders, like sleep apnea and others, are easily treatable. Here are some of the tips to have a good sleep.

Do not consume caffeine late in the night, prior to going to bed.

Have a set time of going to bed and waking up at each day.

Avoid artificial lights while sleeping, in other words, sleep in complete darkness

Dim the lights in your home few hours before bedtime.

Avoid Excess Stress

To achieve maximum weight loss, one also needs to be stress-free. Stress is a recipe for disaster and can put us in the mood to eat unnecessarily or skip our exercising because of the worry we feel. Stress affects healthy dieting, exercise, and quality sleep. Studies show that excess stress elevates cortisol (steroid hormone) levels. Cortisol suppresses the immune system, decreases bone formation, increases the craving for the junk foods, , contributes to depression, and allows fat in the abdominal areas.

There are simple activities that you can practice regularly to reduce stress, like yoga which entails deep breathing technique and meditation. If the levels of stress become too high, then consider seeing a medical professional

Cutting down sugars and refined carbs

suggestions to consider:

Added sugars, especially in processed foods, cause a lot of empty calories in the body and unhealthy blood glucose spikes

Avoid canned goods that contain added sugars

consume low sugar products

Eliminate soft drinks as there are the primary sources of hidden sugars (include energy drinks, coffee drinks, shakes, and sodas)

Cut these sugars from your diet slowly to give your body time to adjust

Switch to carbonated water with a splash juice or unsweetened iced tea or coffee

Avoid refined carbs such as white rice or pasta, white bread and instead, take whole grain products free from gluten